The Distance
by Failte
Summary: A reimagining of the story of how Pidge proposed to Becca. Takes place after "Holiday on Arus" and before "The Circus Comes To Town".


Hi All,

I originally wrote this story a couple years ago under the same title, but it was a song fic, using the song "The Distance" by Bon Jovi. I pulled the story when the site announced they would no longer allow song fics. I really enjoy writing these characters, so I decided to flesh out the story a bit and repost it.

It takes place after "Holidays on Arus" and before "The Circus Comes To Town" in my Voltron universe.

Enjoy!  
Failte

* * *

Pidge flopped onto his back and blew out a long breath. A quick glance at the clock on his bedside table showed it to be just after two in the morning. Something was bothering him, impeding on his ability to sleep. His mind was going in a million different directions and he couldn't seem to turn it off.

This was becoming a common problem and he was sick of walking around in a sleep deprived haze. There had to be a way to fix this. There had to be a way to calm his mind enough to get some sleep.

With a groan, Pidge rolled onto his side and stared at the picture that was gently lit by the light of the half moon coming through his window. It had been taken at the New Years Ball, Pidge in his tuxedo and Becca in her red gown looking more beautiful than he had ever seen her.

If he was going to be honest with himself, he knew exactly what was on his mind, what was keeping him awake and eating away at his soul. Becca.

Almost three months had passed since she had visited for the holidays. He had given serious thought to returning to Terra with her, but it just didn't work out. They emailed each other several times a day and spoke through instant messages whenever they could. Pidge sent her a web camera and had found a program that allowed them to speak to each other, but the delay between Terra and Arus made it nearly impossible to hold a normal conversation.

Every time he thought of her, there was a dull ache of longing below his ribs. They were going to see each other again in a few months. Becca was planning on spending a large part of her summer vacation on Arus. But it seemed like an eternity away.

Before she left, Pidge had impulsively proposed to her. The words had just tumbled out of his mouth and for a split second he was afraid he had scared her away. But they had agreed, when she finished with her schooling and they were ready, they were going to marry. They were going to share the rest of their lives together.

One by one, each member of the Voltron Force was finding love and marrying. First Sven and Romelle, then Keith and Allura, Lance and Darcy, and, in another month, Hunk and Paton. Between them, there were already five children and one more on the way. Sven and Romelle had their son Erik and another baby due any day. Keith and Allura had Cady and their twin babies, Declan and Gideon, and Lance and Darcy had Sky.

Pidge had witnessed all of them finding their love and creating their families and, for a long time, didn't think he wanted it for himself. Then Darcy's sister came to visit. Becca had entered his life at a very low time. He had lost Renata, a girl he had cared deeply for and he was fighting a losing battle with depression and guilt. They had started out as friends and exchanged emails after she had returned to Terra. From that friendship grew something huge and intense. A love he had never thought he could feel.

Becca was a vibrant ray of sunshine that made every part of his life brighter and better. She was smart and quick-witted, fun and playful, genuine and sweet. He never knew a woman like Becca could exist or that she would ever fall in love with him.

The week before, Pidge had gone into town to run a few errands when he had done something else impulsive. A jewelry store had recently opened in Alforia, Arus' capital city. While walking past the window a ring had caught his attention. A beautiful emerald cut emerald with smaller, rectangular cut diamonds on either side. Pidge could all but feel the lightbulb appear above his head. This was _it_! This was Becca's ring. He had proposed, but he hadn't had the ring. This was it.

Without another thought, he entered the store and bought the ring. It was in its small velvet box in his desk drawer, awaiting Becca's summer visit.

But something had happened when Pidge bought that ring. The ache he felt had become almost too painful. The need to see her, to touch her, to put his ring on her finger, had become unbearable. These were the thoughts and feelings that were keeping him up at night.

Pidge rolled onto his back again and rubbed his hand over his chest, trying to ease the pain. There was only one way to deal with this and he couldn't wait another three months, he needed to see her now.

With his mind made up, Pidge was finally able to relax enough to sleep.

* * *

Pidge stopped outside Keith's office door and took a deep breath before raising his hand to knock.

"Yeah?" His commander called through the door.

"It's me, Keith, do you have a minute?"

"Of course, come on in."

Pidge slid the door open and entered the room. "How's it going, man?"

Keith turned from his computer screen and motioned for his teammate to have a seat across the desk from him. "Good, good. Things are clear and it feels good to be able to relax a bit. Allura's actually thinking about starting up an old Arusian tradition called 'Glory Days'. It was a celebration of Arus' history and included rides and games. She tried explaining them to me, but I have no idea what she was talking about, so she's in her father's library looking for old pictures. This means we'll need to find someone who makes the rides and games and setting it all up, not to mention security."

Pidge settled in the chair and nodded. "When will this take place?"

"I think there's a lot of planning to do, so it probably won't be until next spring at the earliest. But now that Cady's getting bigger, Allura really wants the kids to fully understand their Arusian heritage. She's all gung-ho about getting the Arusian traditions up and going again."

"Good for her."

"Yeah." Keith grinned. "It's a good feeling, you know? Things are safe, there are no known threats right now. We can start having fun and enjoying our lives."

"Speaking of enjoying our lives," Pidge mumbled.

"What's that?"

Pidge sat up straighter and cleared his throat. "I have a favor to ask you."

"Does it have anything to do with you not being able to sleep and stumbling around the castle like a zombie?"

"Uh, what?" Pidge felt the heat rise to his face, embarrassed that his behavior had been so obvious.

Keith smiled at him. "Pidge, you're among friends here. We've all noticed you've been…out of sorts. Is there anything you want to talk about? You may as well tell me, I've been able to keep Allura off your back for about a week, but I won't be able to much longer and she is really worried about you."

"She is?"

"Dude, you haven't been yourself, we've all been worried. I told her you would tell us when you were ready."

"I didn't mean for you guys to worry. I'm fine, really I am. I just…I've just had a lot on my mind."

"Well, if this favor you have to ask me will help, I'm more than happy to oblige."

"I'm glad to hear that. I need some time off."

"When?"

"As soon as possible."

Keith leaned forward on his desk. "What's going on, Pidge?"

"I need…I mean, I want to take a vacation. Maybe go to Terra for a couple days."

A slow smile spread across Keith's face. "Ah. I think I understand. Feeling a little lonely?"

"I'm dying here, Keith. I just…I just need a couple days."

"It's the middle of the semester."

"I was thinking I could leave late Wednesday night so I'd get there Friday afternoon and head back Monday morning. Just a weekend."

"I think we can work something out. I'll get your hours covered. But, Pidge, this can't be a common occurrence. I know you miss Becca, but we need you here and I don't like having my crew too far away for too long or too often."

"I know. I don't think this will happen again, it's just that something has come up and I need to talk to her. In person."

"Is everything okay? Is Becca okay?" He asked, suddenly worried.

"Oh, yeah, everything's great. I just…can you keep a secret?"

"You know I can."

"I mean, you can't even tell Allura, I really don't want this getting around until we're ready."

"I understand."

"Before she left, after the holidays, I sort of, well, I proposed."

Keith grinned. "Are you serious?"

"Yeah, it wasn't really official. I just asked. And it's not like we're getting married soon, we're going to wait until she's done with her residency and all."

"That's great, Pidge, congratulations. Of course I won't tell anyone, this is your news to share."

"Thanks. Well, last week, I went into town to get some things and I found a ring that was perfect, so I bought it and…" Pidge trailed off.

"You can't wait to give it to her."

"Exactly."

"I remember that feeling. I had to order Allura's ring and it felt like forever before it arrived, once I had it, I swear it was burning a hole in my pocket. I couldn't wait to get it on her finger."

"I should've known you'd understand."

"All right. I'll take care of the schedule, you go see about getting a flight."

Pidge jumped to his feet. "Thanks, man, I really owe you."

Keith stood and walked to the door with his friend. "Don't worry about it, just enjoy yourself."

* * *

After several days of planning, Pidge was on a small transport ship on his way to Terra. After talking with Darcy and doing some research online, he had planned what he hoped would be the perfect weekend.

He decided to surprise Becca. With Darcy's help, he had gotten in touch with Becca's roommates and they had convinced her to keep the weekend free, telling her they just wanted to hang out and watch movies. He then made reservations at a hotel near the campus so they could really be alone and at a nice restaurant nearby. Savannah, one of her roommates, was even packing an overnight bag for her so she could just escape with him. And both her roommates swore they wouldn't tell Becca, they promised to keep it all a surprise.

Pidge had the ring tucked into his pocket and settled in for the long trip to Terra.

* * *

It was late afternoon on Friday when Pidge wandered over to the campus where Becca was studying medicine. He was running a little late, the flight had taken an hour longer than planned and the trip from the Garrison post, where he left his ship, had been plagued with traffic.

He rubbed his hand over his chin, wishing he'd had time to check into the hotel and shave or at least to drop off the small duffle bag he carried over his shoulder. But if he was going to catch Becca by surprise, he wanted to do it before she returned home.

The campus was even bigger than he had imagined. The buildings were huge and old, clumped closely together with grey sidewalks weaving in and around them. Pidge paused in a small courtyard and studied a map engraved in a metal sign. He had to admit he was lost and wasn't sure where to go from here. Maybe this part of his grand romantic gesture wasn't too well thought out.

Savannah had said Becca's last class ended at 4:00, Pidge checked his watch, it was a quarter after four. The class was in the Hannrahan building and then Becca usually stopped at the coffee shop in Clark Hall for a drink.

He located Clark Hall on the map and moved through the crowd of students, hoping to blend in. If he missed her, Pidge had printed off directions to the apartment she shared with her two roommates and he could head over there.

Then he saw her. The sidewalk had led him to a wide open area in the center of campus where students seemed to gather and talk. There were backless benches with planters on each end, old fashioned street lamps, and a tall post with a large clock face. Students milled around, voices rose around him, but that was all unnoticed as he studied her.

Becca hadn't seen him yet. She was standing with two girls and a guy, a black backpack over her shoulder and a cup of coffee in her hand as she spoke animatedly with them. Her hair was pulled back in a ponytail that swung as she talked and the cool nip in the air had reddened her cheeks. His heart pounded and he felt as though his feet were glued to the ground. This was the moment he had been waiting for, planning for, and now that it was here, he found himself feeling numb.

Pidge stumbled as someone walked into him.

"Sorry," the guy muttered before going back to the conversation he had been having with his friend.

Shaken from his reverie, Pidge started walking again, never taking his eyes off her.

As though she sensed him, Becca glanced over and did a double take when she saw him. All three of her friends looked over to see what had grabbed her attention.

Pidge watched as her mouth spoke his name. The cup slipped from her hand and her backpack slid off her shoulder as surprise caused her arms to drop.

"Pidge!"

He heard her that time as she pushed past some students and ran toward him. She jumped onto and over a bench and launched herself at him. Pidge dropped his duffle and caught her, wrapping his arms around her waist and lifting her off the ground in a rib bruising hug.

"You're here? You're really here?" Becca tilted her head back and stared at him, taking in every detail of his face. "Why are you here? Is everything all right?"

"Everything is fine," he whispered hoarsely. "Everything is fantastic. I just…I needed to see you."

Her expression softened and her eyes widened. "You just flew all the way here from Arus because you needed to see me?"

He brought his hands up to cup her face. "And you're even more beautiful than the last time I saw you."

"Oh geez, now you've done it." Her voice cracked as a tear slid from her eye.

Using the pad of his thumb, Pidge wiped the tear away and lowered his mouth to hers.

Someone cleared their throat. Pidge lifted his head and Becca looked over her shoulder where her three friends stood.

"You must be Pidge." A pretty black haired girl stood, holding Becca's backpack. "I'm Savannah."

Pidge grinned at her. "It's nice to finally meet you. Thanks for all your help."

Becca turned to stand beside Pidge, wrapping her arm around his waist. "Help?"

"Your roommate has been very helpful in planning this trip."

"I'll take this back to the apartment." Savannah indicated the backpack and then held out a large red shoulder bag. "And you take this."

"What is it?" Becca asked.

"Just trust me, Becs, take this and go, have a great weekend."

"Uh, okay. Oh, Pidge, I guess you know Savannah and this is Clair and Mike. Guys, this is Pidge."

"It feels like we already know you from all Becca has told us," Clair said as she shook Pidge's hand.

"It's nice to finally meet you." Mike shook his hand, a little stiffly.

"And with this, we'll leave you alone." Savannah leaned in and whispered to Becca, "I will expect details."

Becca furrowed her brow. "Um, okay. I can't wait to see what's planned."

"It was nice meeting you all," Pidge said, taking Becca's hand. "I hope you won't think I'm being rude, but I'm going to take my beautiful girlfriend now and, if you're lucky, I'll return her on Sunday night."

Becca waved to her friends as she let Pidge pull her away. "I can't believe you're really here," she said, squeezing his hand. "I am so excited! This is the best surprise ever. Let's going dancing!"

"Dancing?"

"I feel like dancing!" She giggled. "This is like something out of a movie."

"You really didn't know I was coming?"

"No! This was a complete surprise. Who knew you were coming?"

"Darcy, your roommates. I've never been here, I needed a little help."

"Where are we going now?"

Pidge stopped at the corner and looked up at the street signs. "Uh, we need to get to Dawkins Avenue."

"Oh, okay, we can turn here and it's three blocks down. What are we doing there?"

"I'm only here for the weekend and, no offense to your roommates who seem like perfectly lovely people, but I wanted to be alone with you. Completely alone. So I got us a hotel room."

"A hotel? On Dawkins?" Becca stopped in her tracks. "You got us a room at The Tyler Hotel?"

"Yeah. It looked good online, isn't it nice?"

"Nice? Pidge, it's the classiest, most expensive hotel in the city!"

He grinned at her. "I know how to treat my lady."

"Okay, not a movie, this is like something out of a fairy tale."

"So, how're you doing?"

"I'm fantastic."

"How's school?"

"Great!"

"I was worried about surprising you," Pidge admitted. "I was worried about getting in the way of your studies. You don't have a big test on Monday or anything, do you?"

"Nope. I'm doing pretty well. Just one more year until I get to start my residency on Arus, I cannot wait!"

"Me either."

They walked the several blocks to the hotel, talking about every day things and catching up. Pidge felt light and happy. Becca's hand in his, a beautiful early spring day, and the next two days with nothing to do but spend time with the woman he loved.

Ten minutes later, he unlocked the door to the suite he had reserved.

"Oh my God," Becca breathed as she entered the room.

The first room was a large sitting room with a sofa and love seat, both over stuffed and comfortable looking, facing a large flat screen television hanging over a stone fireplace. A table in front of the sofa held a vase with two dozen red roses and a tray laden with a bottle of champagne nestled in an ice bucket and two glasses.

To the right was a single step leading to an open door. Pidge followed Becca through that door to the large bedroom. A king sized four poster bed dominated the room. It was covered with a luxurious red and gold comforter and several plump pillows. Another fireplace was centered on the wall opposite the door and to the left was the door to the bathroom.

"I would definitely say you know how to treat your lady," Becca whispered. "This is amazing."

Pidge set their bags on the padded bench at the foot of the bed. "Becca."

She turned to him. Her throat swelled and her heart raced. "Pidge."

"I've been planning this trip for about a week and now that I'm here and you're here, it doesn't seem quite real."

"I still can't believe it's real."

He glanced at his watch. "We have dinner reservations in an hour."

"Where?"

"Le Petite Bistro."

Her eyes widened. "Wow, you really are going all out. Um, they have a dress code."

"I know. I need to shower and shave and change. Savannah said she'd grab everything you'd need for the weekend."

Becca crossed to the bench and opened the bag her friend had given her. She giggled as she began pulling clothes out. "She sure did. Seriously, she's the best friend ever! You go shower and I'll get dressed. Oh, she packed the black dress. She is so awesome!"

"Becca." Pidge wrapped an arm around her waist and pulled her close. "I love you."

"Oh, Pidge," she sighed, laying her hand on his cheek. "I love you too. I am so glad you came, this is the best surprise I could've ever hoped for."

He lowered his head and nuzzled her throat. "We could skip dinner."

"We could. But I'm starving and I love the idea of going on a date with you tonight."

Reluctently, he released her and picked up his duffle. "When we get back tonight, I have every intention of ravaging you."

"And I have every intention of letting you."

* * *

It was nearly three hours later when the two of them stumbled back into their room. Giggling and flirting. They had shared a bottle of wine and it had gone straight to their heads as they enjoyed a light meal and engaging conversation.

Pidge stripped off his sports coat and threw it over the back of the loveseat. "So what do you think? A little bubbly?"

Becca kicked off her heels and fell back onto the sofa. "I think that's a great idea."

Pidge popped the cork and poured them each a glass. "To us."

Becca gently tapped her glass against his. "To the handsomest, sweetest, most amazing man in the world."

"And who would that be?"

"You met him earlier, his name's Mike."

"Smartass." Pidge settled back beside her, wrapping his arm around her shoulders. "Although he did seem a little…uncertain about me."

"Nah, he's a good guy. I think he used to have a thing for me, but Clair likes him and is working on getting him to notice her."

"Do I need to worry?"

Becca snorted. "Absolutely not. Why would I even look at another man when I have you?"

Pidge leaned over and picked up the black remote on the table. Pointing it at the fireplace, the gas flames shot up around the fake logs.

"Fire by remote, how romantic." Becca teased.

"It's better than getting on my hands and knees and messing up my clothes."

"Yeah, but if you got on your hands and knees it would be easier for me to check out your butt."

"You want to check out my butt?"

"Among other things."

Pidge smiled as he set his glass on the table. "I think we can make that happen."

"I was hoping you'd say that."

Pidge turned to face her, stretching his arm along the back of the couch, he picked up a lock of her hair and twirled it around his finger. "I have something to talk to you about, Becca."

"You sound so serious."

"This is serious."

"Okay." She set her glass of champagne on the table next to his and turned to face him.

He cleared his throat. "When you came to Arus, with your parents, for the holidays, I, uh, I asked you to marry me."

"I remember," she whispered.

"Well, I've been thinking about that. A lot." He cleared his throat again. "It hadn't gone exactly as I had wanted it to."

Becca tensed. "What do you mean?"

"I didn't want you to go, I was scared of losing you and I just wanted you to know how much you mean to me."

"Are…are you saying you don't want to marry me?"

"No, Becca, I'm saying I want to do this right. It shouldn't have been rushed when we were saying good bye." Pidge reached into his pocket and pulled out the small, black velvet box. "I do want to spend the rest of my life with you, Rebecca, I want to marry you and have a family with you."

She didn't say a word as he flipped open the box.

"I saw this a couple weeks ago and I thought of you. I know a diamond is more traditional, Allura, Darcy, and Paton all have diamonds. If that's what you want, I can take this back or I'll get you another ring and you could keep this as a promise ring or something. I just…I thought it was nice, but it's okay if you don't like it." Pidge broke off when Becca lifted her wet eyes to his.

"Let me get this straight," she said, her voice quivering. "You saw this ring, just bought it, and planned this surprise trip so you could propose to me properly?"

He blushed and nodded, beginning to feel like a fool. "If this isn't…"

Becca put a hand over his mouth. "Give me a second here. I need a second to take all this in. I'm, uh, I'm a little overwhelmed." She swallowed a couple times and took a moment to compose herself.

"You know, I knew the first time I saw you I was going to marry you. You were walking into Castle Control after helping Hunk with the lions. You were wearing blue coveralls over your clothes and you had a smudge of grease, right here." She traced her fingertip along his jaw. "You either didn't notice me or you ignored me. But I noticed you. I thought 'Wow, he's cute' and I asked Darcy who you were. She said you were Pidge, Green's pilot and a bit of a computer nerd. She also said you were nursing a broken heart and since I always felt it was my duty to mend injuries, I should leave you alone so I didn't bother you."

"I'm glad you didn't listen to her."

Becca smiled. "So am I. I want you to know that I loved your proposal. You always over think things, you plan everything out so carefully and, while I love that about you, I also love the rare times you're impulsive. You bought that ring and you couldn't wait to give it to me, could you?"

He shook his head.

"Oh, Pidge, how can I _not_ love you? Of course I will marry you and this ring, this is so perfect. I don't want another ring." With trembling fingers, she took the ring out of the box and slipped it on her finger.

"Does it fit?"

She held her hand out in front of her. "Yes, it does, perfectly."

He took her hand and kissed the back of it. "So, you always knew you were going to marry me?"

"There was something about you. When I first met you, you were so quiet and withdrawn. I really wanted to get to know you, to see what you were hiding. I wanted to soothe you and make you smile. I wanted you."

Pidge grinned. "I did notice you. It was hard not to. But I also felt like I was being unfaithful to Renata."

"I know. I didn't want to make you feel rushed."

"What I had with Renata was different. It was very innocent and sweet. What I have with you is something more. I was very fond of Renata, but I know now that I love you."

Becca smiled. "I know. I feel the same way."

"I remembered when Lance proposed to Darcy, he got your father's blessing. I haven't spoken to your parents yet."

"That's all right. I'm going to marry you no matter what my parents say. We'll call them later. Maybe tomorrow."

"You don't want to call them now?"

She shook her head. "I just want tonight to be us. I want to share this amazing evening with only you. Then tomorrow I'm going to shout it from the rooftops."

"Maybe I'll call Chip and tell him."

"I'd like to meet him."

"Of course."

"I want to know more about your family, Pidge."

"You do know my family. They live in a castle on Arus."

Becca slid closer and snuggled against his side. "Dr. Audric. I like the sound of that."

"So do I."

"I'm really glad you came."

Pidge nuzzled the top of her head. "So am I."


End file.
